so has anyone come up with a packing list that would do for a few days or a month i've just finished packing my ortlieb bikepacker plus panniers for a few days camping and i've managed to pack them to overflowing
now believe me when i tell you i need all thats in there nothing excessive .
how these ultra light boys do it is a total mystery to this kid

Overflowing makes me guess: too many clothes.

Perfect? That would be something different for everyone.

Here is approximately what I plan to take on my upcoming US Southern Tier:


Toiletries Category total 5.9 oz.
Toothbrush 0.7 oz. Small travel model
Toothpaste 2 oz. Sample size tube
Microfiber towel 1 oz. 12" x 16" Replaces full sized towel
Toilet paper 0.2 oz. A few sheets
Liquid soap 2 oz. Baby shampoo, camp suds, or any sample size shampoo

Shelter and Sleep Category total 4 lb. 10.7 oz.
Tent 2 lb. 9 oz. Eureka Spitfire 1 Replace 8 heavy stakes with 6 MSR Needle Stakes
Sleeping bag 1 lb. 1 oz. Mountain Hardwear Phantom +45
Sleeping bag liner 4.7 oz. Cocoon silk mummy
Sleeping pad 12 oz. Thermarest NeoAir (regular)

Cooking & Eating Category total 9.4 oz.
Stove 2 oz. Pop can stove (with windscreen and pot stand)
Pot 6 oz. REI Ti Pot 1.7 liter
Utensils 0.8 oz. Guyot Designs MicroBites
Lighter 0.4 oz. Bic
Can opener 0.2 oz. P38

Clothes Category total 4 lb. 4.20 oz.
Bike shorts 0.0 oz. Pearl Izumi Ultrasensor Weight not counted because worn on bike
Tights 5.5 oz. Cheap ones with no chamois
Jersey 0.0 oz Short sleeved Weight not counted because worn on bike
Warm shirt 9.2 oz. Immersion Research Worn on or off the bike
Tee shirt 4.7 oz. UA Heat Gear Worn off bike
Down vest 12 oz. Cabelas Used as pillow
Bike hat 2.5 oz.
Cap 2 oz. Warm
Rain jacket 7.5 oz. Sierra Designs Worn on and off bike
Rain pants 7.5 oz. Sierra Designs Worn on and off bike
Running shorts 3.9 oz. Nike DriFit
Bike shoes 1 pr. 0.0 oz. Sidi Mega Giau Weight not counted because worn on bike
Crocs 1 pr. 9.4 oz. Crocs knock offs with straps removed Worn off bike

Miscellaneous Category total 3 lb. 13.70 oz.
Lock 5 oz Small 4' master cable lock
Flashlight 0.25 oz, Pico LED Zipper Light
Knife 1.9 oz. Leatherman Squirt S4
Sunglasses 1 oz.
Maps 4 oz.
Wallet stuff 0.75 oz.
Sunscreen 2.oz.
Lip stuff 0.5 oz.
Insect repellent 1 oz.
Camera 2 lb. 7 oz. Olympus with spare lens, charger, memory, case etc.
Tripod 4 oz. Pedco UltraPod 2
Water bladder 0.9 oz. Platypus 1 liter +
Carabiner 0.6 oz.
Cord 45' 170# 0.8 oz.

First aid and gear repair Category total 3.0 oz.
Ibuprofen 6
Benedryl 6
Bandaids a few assorted
Alcohol pads 4
Gauze pads 4
Bactericide 1 Small packet
Steri-strips 1 sheet
Needle and thread 1
Duct tape a few feet

Bags and packing stuff Category total 1 lb. 1.1 oz.
Ultralight backpack 10 oz. REI Flash 18 Used as main bag on rear rack
Handlebar bag 4 oz. Home made bracket to hold camera bag and stuff sack
Stuff sacks 3.1 oz.

Gear Total 15 lb. 0 oz.

Bike 25 lb. Including blinkie light, tool kit, pump, rack, handlebar bag bracket, and bottles and cages 25 lb.

Grand total including bike, gear and tools 40 lb.

If you are talking about doing a tour from November to March (and in some places from September to June) anywhere north of the 23 degrees north latitude, you probably aren't going to be able to do anything ultralight. It's cold, you need clothes to deal with the cold. Save the ultralight stuff for warmer months.

now that is amazing,in one of my panniers i have and its full, my exped down sleeping mat/down s/bag /thermarest pillow. then packed in a drybag is my cycling gear longs /merino base layer/cycling jersey/gillet.2 pair socks. scull cap.in another drybag i have my cooking gear,crux stove gas cylinder pots all fit neatly into one another, tent akto is on the rear rack, barbag holds the usual radio/ snacks/ small camera/ lights/toilet tissues just in case. my wet gear is packed just inside the pannier the only extra clothing i have is my rab jacket which i'm going to need ,oh yeah small first aid kit.

That is an awesome list! I'll be referring to it for our trip!

Thanks!

Some of it is a little experimental especially for the conditions expected. If necessary I will adjust as I go. That said it is only an incremental step from my Pacific Coast packing list and I was quite comfortable on that one. The biggest differences are the bike and the use of light sil-nylon dry sacks instead of panniers. Gear weight was 22 pounds for the Pacific Coast trip (not counting food water or a duffel bag I was supposed to mail home, but never got around to)

Unfortunately, I can't justify traveling anywhere as light as you on my up-coming tours. Like "cyccommute" says, traveling in the off season, or anywhere in the northern regions, especially within the mountainous areas of British Columbia, and where it can be 4-5 days between any facilities at all, requires heavier-duty equipment, including bike, more mechanical supplies, food, water, and clothes.

There's no such thing as a perfect packing list. What you take depends on where you are going, the expected weather, and personal factors. For example, if I did the Southern Tier in February with staehpj1's packing list, I would be freezing, both on and off the bike. I wouldn't last 2 days with that kit. But I don't doubt he'll do fine.

CGOAB has several..

That is as a very impressive pack list. Considering your tour begins in February, the one suggestion I would make is to add a base layer, I like merino wool but Capilene is much lighter. Having done the Southern Tier (E-W) Feb-April 2010 there were plenty of cold nights in the 20's. The base layer is great for sleeping in and for the cold mornings. I'd add gloves too.

Thanks. It is always good to hear from someone that has done the route. After looking at historical data, my assumptions were that I needed to plan for a likely trip low of about 20 and need to be able to survive an unexpected 0F, but most overnight lows being at or near freezing for the first third of the trip or so. Based on your experience, is that a bad assumption?

I find that my tights work as a base layer on the bottom and the heat gear tee on top. Gloves were not listed but it is assumed that I will have at a minimum long fingered bike gloves (I run in them down to 0F actual, but have not ridden in them below the mid 20s). I really want some real light over mitts, but have not found what I am looking for. What I want is just a shell. I may have to resort to sewing up my own. Plastic bags over gloves work surprisingly well and worst case I'll resort to them.

I typically find that with a windproof shell top and bottom I need way less insulation than people typically advocate for any given temperature. Depending on what the weather is I figure that I'll add some extra layers purchased along the way.

Mine ... on my website (see signature line) ... is pretty good. However, I have had another look at it recently, and have made some modifications to it which I have not posted on the website yet. Those modifications reflect my current bicycle setup.

just after finnishing loading for a vew days, my we tour into tully more forest park all in all 4 dirt Monkey panniers the old Vango Spirit 300+ Robens 500 sleeping bag vango light weight stove change of clothes for a few days and all the other little bits
total weight 31lbs temperature at the moment +1 george

Do you have room for food and extra water in there? I can't imagine riding in the desert with just those two water bottles and even a day's worth of food takes up SOME room...


Anyway, the stuff I just packed for the trip I'm leaving on tomorrow could sure be a lot closer to perfect...on the plus side, when the weather's warmer I'll save a TON of space/weight by ditching the 20 degree sleeping bag and some clothes. I also have plenty of gear that can stand to be upgraded in terms of weight/bulk, I'm probably going overboard with food (even though I have 2.5 days' worth supposedly, I'll probably end up with tons left over), and for a short trip I really don't need the amount of socks I'm bringing...

Remember the definition of Utopia = nowhere.

Hi

I have mine which is still be refined in preparation for my Dreaming Tour (Darwin to Perth) in 2012 posted here. This ride means often no food resupply for two weeks or possibly more and sometimes no water re-supply for three days maybe more depending on conditions.

As with all these lists, you need to keep in mind your touring which may be quite different from others.

Andrew

The only perfect packing list is the one you have that enables you to get through your tour comfortably, safely and efficiently.

No-one else's entire packing list wil apply -- yes, it might provide you with some ideas, but everyone's tastes and tolerances are different and what suits them might or might not suit you.

As pointed out in other posts, there are different styles of touring (credit card through trekking), different lengths of tours (overnight to multi-year), and different reasons for touring (point-to-point achievement, cultural, getaway, fund-raiser, whatever).

Each of those will influence what will be packed at the start of the tour.

As with so many touring issues on this forum, there is only one piece of advice that truly applies -- assemble what you think you need, then go practise on overnight or weekend tours to sort out what you actually do need, the stuff you think you'd like to take, and the stuff you really can leave behind.

After you have a base kit, you will find over the years that you will add and subtract your gear as your interests, needs, wants, and style of touring change.

Yes, lots more space than it looks like. The two dry sack tops are rolled way down so they will hold several days worth of food and a couple liters of water. When/if I need to carry more water than that it can be strapped on the rear rack. Additionally there is my 10 ounce REI Flash backpack that holds 18 liters and can be worn or strapped on to the rack for extra short term capacity.

Well put. For example, I like to cook relatively elborate meals so I carry cooking related gear that someone who makes simpler meals in one pot wouldn't have any use for.

That is impressive. kudos to your minimalist method.

For me there's no perfect packing list. I've been working on it for 30 years and I'm still making changes. However, I'm pretty clear about my preferences. I make a few tweaks each time, going back and forth on a few items. I also vary the list depending on where I'm going.

You have to balance how comfortable you want to be vs. how much weight you want to carry. The number of clothing choices also involves how often you want to wash things, and how stinky you'll allow yourself to become.

The idea of going ultralight is really attractive for the riding, but I'm wondering how many days in a row I'd have to wear the same shorts and jersey, how often I'd have to wash them (every night?), what my kitchen facilities would be like, etc. I'll be paying close attention to staehjp1's ultralight tour for more insight.

antokelly, I like to plan my trips whether it's by car, boat, motorcycle or bicycle and over a few decades of this, there is no perfect list. There's a generic middle ground between the minimalist and maximumist planner that is going to suit you and perhaps nobody else.

There are four points that I find that are fairly constant:
-Communication device.
-Minor repair items.
-Food and drink for an unplanned additional 8 hours.
-First aid kit.

Brad

Beautiful list, but for many it would be far from the perfect list.......I'll join in and point the OP to my list. I think it's close to perfect, but I don't expect anyone else to think so.

https://wheelsofchance.org/2010/02/02/ultralight-setup/

FWIW, the list I posted is one in a range of lists that I have used. The weight range was 15-45 pounds. I don't think any of them were bad lists. That said when I went lighter and lighter I was surprised by the fact that I really didn't miss any of the stuff that was dropped.

Will I go heavier again? Maybe. Will I go as high as 45 pounds again? Never say never, but probably not unless the trip involved some other activity that required lots of gear.